Rotary washing-machine.



Patented Oct. l6, I900.

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ROTARY WASHING MACHINE.

(Application filed Jan. 27, 1900.)

(No Moelel.)

ATT as T ll rrnn Srnrns an r rFIoE.

LYMAN C. IIARTSOUGH, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.-

ROTARY WASHING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 659,921, dated October 16, 1900.

Application filed January 27, 1900. Serial No. 3.030. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LYMAN C. HARTSOUGH, a citizen of theUnited States,residingat Cleveland, in the countyof Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Im pro vements in Rotary \Vashing-lldachines; and 1 do declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to rotary washing-machines of the variet-yin which the clothes are placed within a rotary or revolving cylinder and cleansed by the action of the water and the agitation of the clothes therein, substantially as shown and described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective elevation of my new and improved machine, showing the cover in raised position and the door of the cylinder open, as occurs when clothes are removed from or placed into the machine. Fig. 2 is a crosssection of the cylinder itself, and Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the entire machine on the line of its axis transversely and showing the means for heating the water receptacle or chamber i n which the cylinder revolves. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the lift-blade alone.

As already indicated, this particular machine belongs to the class in which there is combined rubbing of the clothes with tossing and agitation of the water in. which they are tossed, although under certain conditions there is only rubbing action with agitation and a rolling of the clothes overand over upon the ribbed surface of the cylinder. I am of course aware that in the broader sense this method of washing clothes is not new and that slatted and drum-shaped cylinders in their broader sense are not new; but I am also aware that well-nigh universally it remains the practice to use the old style of washboard with rubbing-ribs and hard handwork to do the washing. Having in view these several objects of quick and thorough Washing of the clothes with absolute safety from injury by reason of the internal construction of the machine and a light-working machine, I have produced the machine herein shown, in which all the foregoing considerations are present and all with acknowledged economy in time and laborover the old washboard and hand operations, which this machine is designed to displace.

Having reference now again to the drawings, I employ a semicylindrical Water or suds receptacle with a sheet-metal body portion A and preferably wooden ends B; but the ends also may be of metal, if preferred, and the said receptacle thus constructed is placed upon suitable legs or supports 0. The cover D corresponds to half of a section of a cylinder, of which the said receptacle constitutes the other half, so that when the cover is down in working position the outline of the complete receptacle, comprising the portions A B and the cover D, is semicylindrical and the internal or washing cylinder E is practically the same distance from the inclosing wall of the complete receptacle all around. The space between cylinder E and its complete wall need not be very large, but sufficient to give a free course for the water and suds through the channeled or ribbed periphery of the cylinder E. It will be noticed that the said cylinder has solid heads 2, which I preferably make of wood, and a series of strips or bars 3 on its periphery at suitable intervals apart and formed, preferably, of separate pieces of wood secured to the heads2 by means of screws or nails or other practical means. There is allowed a space between these strips which may correspond more or less to the width of the strips themselves, so that there will be a thoroughly free throughpassage and play for the suds about the side of the cylinder. The said cylinder is supported at its ends on spindles 4, having flanges fixed to the outside of the heads 2, where they will not come in contact with the clothes, and to insure easy operation I provide ball-bearings 5 for the said spindles.

I have said that the action of this machine is by agitation and tossing, which in itself, I am aware, is not broadly new; but the feature of novelty which I have introduced and which I believe appears for the first time in a machine of this kind is, first, a single tossing or lift blade G. This blade I make of such width as will raise the clothes and carry them bodily up for quite a distance and then throw them off into the cylinder in such a way as to create a splash or dash of the clothes into the liquid. Ordinarily the water will -not rise more than, say, five or six inches above the bottom of the cylinder, as indicated substantially by line a a, Fig. so that when the clothes are cast off the lift-blade they .raised by the lift-blade in contact with the rubbing-s11 rface of the ribs 3, and since there is purposely but one blade the lift and toss of the clothes occur only once each revolution, while the rubbing of the clothes on the ribs takes place in the interval between the interrupted action of the said blade. I thus combine both rubbing and tossing, and, as I believe, in a new and very effective way, and the result: tells upon the work, which is most thoroughly done and in a remarkably short time as compared with hand-rubbing, donsidering the aggregate quantity of clothes washed at one time.

The advantage and novelty of a single liftblade are now apparent. It affords all the tossing wanted, and some is absolutely needed; leaves the cylinder free for much rubbing of the clothes in the ribs, and greatly lightens the turning of the machine. All these are considerations of prime importance and essential to a perfect machine, and hence a single lift-blade with rubbing-ribs is claimed to be new and original with me. I have also found in my experience and experiments that frequently, when the clothes are of a delicate character or do not require the more thorough treatment, it is desirable to have a cylinder in which there is no tossing-blade. To this end I have made the blade G removable, whereby I can convert the cylinder front a tossing-cylinder to a purely and only rubbing-cylinder. The heads 2 are therefore constructed each with open radial slots on their edges, into which the blade G,is inserted from the outside, and in this instance (and preferably) the said blade comes immediately under the free edge of the cylinder-door, through which the clothes are introduced and removed. The said door is hinged to the first adjoining rib 3 at its rear and has cleats h on its bottom, to Whichits own ribs 3 are secured, and the extremities of said cleats have notches h, which are adapted to rest in the corresponding notches g of the lift-blade. To keep said blade in its place laterally as to the cylinder, I have in this instance also formed notches g in the lower edge of the blade, which engage against the inside of the walls 2 of the cylinder, and thus keep said blade in place laterally. This of course would occur by means of the cleats h in the notches C but the double security is regarded as better for all purposes.

wanted I employ a burner K, preferably an oil or vapor burner; but it might be anyother gas-hnrnernatural or manufactured gas. In this instance also the said burner is an attached member of the machine, being supported on a bridge piece or plate L, fixed to the legs of the machine and connected by pipes m to the supply-tank M. A suitable valve n controls the flow of oil to the burner, which, it' a hydrocarbon -burner, may burn kerosene or gasolene. A bracket 9 supports the tank and pipe on the side of the machine. The heads of the cylinder being shown as of wood, they have here an H-shaped brace 10 across their outer sides, the sides of the brace running transversely to the grain of the wood to keep it from warping, and the flanges of spindles 4 are fixed to the cross-"bar of said brace. I

The cover D of course fits closely on the receptacle, so as to make a practically watertight joint, and to this end has a flange d about its edge extending into the receptacle and fitting closelywithin the sides thereof,and any other means that will promote closeness and be of service may be added to make the joint complete in these particulars. A catch 12 on the receptacle is engaged by a clasp or anysuitable hook 13 on the cover to hold the cover down.

What I claim is 1. In a rotary Washing-machine, a cylinder having closed ends and a transverselya-ibbed periphery, and a hinged door in its periphery overlapping said ends, and a removable liftblade set into said cylinder in the opening provided for the door and confined by the door, substantially as described.

2. In Washing-machines, an exteriorly-ribbed cylinder with a doorway in its periphery and radial slots oppositely arranged in its ends open through said doorway, a removable liftblade seated in said slots and having recesses in its outer edge, and a door overlapping said blade and confining the same having cleats notched to match said recesses, substantially as described.

Witness my hand to the foregoing specification this 13th day of January, 1900.

LYMAN O. IIAR'ISOUGH.

Witnesses:

H. T. FISHER, R. 13. Moses. 

